History of Classic Cars

Here we span over a century of British car productions, profiling over 80 of the most popular and famous cars from over 50 different British marques.

Enjoy this trip through the last century and the important eras throughout the stages of the motor industry including the Veteran Era, featuring cars such as the 1896 Arnold Benz, Rolls Royce Silver Ghost and the Ford Model T. Vintage and Throughbred including the Austin Seven, Bentley 3-litre, and the Daimler Double Six. The Classic years, featuring the Jaguar XK120, the Triumph TR2 and the AC Cobra. And finally Modern Day Classics such as the Rover SD1, Morgan Plus 8, TVR Griffith and the McLaren F1!

Classic Car Era's

Please choose an era below to continue each story

The Veteran era (1896 - 1914)
Although a number of British motor cars can be counted among the ‘greats’ of the 20th century, Great Britain was not actually a motoring pioneer. The world’s first cars were built in Germany, where Nicolaus Otto designed the first practical petrol-driven engine, and where Benz and Daimler made the first practical ‘horseless carriages’.

The Vintage era (1919 - 1939)
Between 1919 and 1939, Britain’s motor industry went through an upheaval. Recovery from the First World War was followed by the glories of what is known as the ‘vintage’ era, the economic traumas of the Depression of the early 1930s, and the spirited recovery which preceded the outbreak of the Second World War.

The Classic Years era (1945 - 1970)
For Britain’s motor industry, the Second World War changed everything. When Britain’s car makers returned to their peacetime businesses in 1945, they faced a different reality. The market-place, clientele, social climate and economy had all been transformed.

Modern Day Classics era (1970 - 1995)
For British motorists in the late 1970s, the miracle was that the climate for motoring changed so fast. Even though there had been two vicious energy crises and a long period of horrifyingly high inflation, fine cars were still being made, space was still available to drive them, and new styles were still being developed.

Our thanks to the publisher Bookmart, who kindly provided this history content for us (c) text copyright Bookmart Ltd 2002

British Classic Cars

The Veteran era
(1896 - 1914)

The Vintage era
(1919 - 1939)

The Classic Years era
(1945 - 1970)

Modern Day Classics era
(1970 - 1995)

Rover SD1 - Now SOLD!
Posted: 8th June 2006

Interested in owning this unique car, raced by Richard Hammond on BBC's Top Gear - probably the most famous motoring show in the world? Well, now's your chance!

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Would you like to sell your classic car here? Contact us

You can browse our current classic car pages by using the navigation menu above, there is already much to see and lots more to come!

In the coming weeks, we'll add more classic car information, more classic car features, more classic cars for sale, classic car competitions, classic car merchandise, a classic car AutoJumble and much more!

The autoclassic team are amassing a huge archive of classic vehicle information, including histories, statistics and classics for sale. We'll add everything as time allows, but if there’s anything you’re looking for and can't find it here, we may be able to help. Just send us your wanted list and we'll do what we can!

The History of Classic Cars

[ click here ] for autoclassic's history of classic cars. Spanning over a century of British car production. Profiling over 80 of the most popular and famous cars from over 50 different British marques.

Fun and Games section

[ click here ] if you fancy playing a game of the popular card game trumps, classic car style. Or if you are a master at quizes and think you know your stuff on the motor industry. We hope you enjoy our latest new autoclassic feature section!

Virtual Tour of the Morgan Motor Factory

[ click here ] to take a virtual tour of the Morgan Motor Factory in Malvern, England. A 50 photo tour. All for your viewing pleasure. Enjoy this special feature brought to you by autoclassic and RPi Engineering.

What is autoclassic.com all about?
In brief, we are offering people all over the world the opportunity to get involved in a classic vehicle community. A site for real classic vehicle enthusiasts, whatever you may drive.

Promote your club free!
Clubs and organisations (non-profits) can submit their content without charge, with all the appropriate credits and links. The content can be anything related to classic vehicles, news, events, projects, histories, anything at all!

ferrari

The autoclassic.com project offers the opportunity to non-profit organisations and enthusiastic individuals to become actively involved and provide a showcase for their passion! A passion we share at autoclassic!

Business can get involved too
The basic idea is that non-profit organisations, such as clubs and associations, and individuals can contribute at no cost. Businesses will be required to pay a modest subscription to showcase their vehicles, products or services to a world wide audience. Any business in the classic vehicle industry will be able to place vehicles, products or services on the site via a sophisticated administration system in a way we believe is not currently available elsewhere.

You can advertise your vehicles now (please click here) and then take advantage of our three month FREE trial from launch. Potential customers are searching our database across the world!

We have also included an inter-business forum allowing businesses to build up contacts and talk to each other. We hope that this will help business in the classic vehicle industry build on their existing networks and exchange information.

bugatti

Delve into the past with our classic car history pages
We are compiling a list of classic car and manufacturer histories.
[ Learn more ]

Mechanical Art, classic car paintings and prints
autoclassic features classic car paintings for sale
[ More info ]

Jeremy Clarkson tests a Rover SD1 (not to be missed)
RPi Engineering gets together with Jeremy Clarkson.
[ Feature ]

Contribute to autoclassic.com
If you would like to contribute, we would love to hear from you!
[ Discover how ]

Classic car model toys
Are you a collector, looking for a particular toy model?
[ Visit Showcase ]

Classic stats
Great news! The world's fastest growing online classic vehicle resource is now serving classic vehicle enthusiasts in nearly 130 countries! The official launch of our classic car bonanza is imminent, but already autoclassic has attracted interest from the following 129 countries across the world: Europe Albania, Austria , Belarus, Belgium , Bosnia-Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Czech Republic & Slovak, Denmark , Estonia, Finland, France , Germany , Great Britain , Greece, Hungary , Iceland, Ireland, Italy , Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Moldova, Monaco, Netherlands , Norway , Poland , Portugal , Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain , Sweden , Switzerland , Turkey , Ukraine, Yugoslavia North America Barbados, Canada, Caymen Islands, Dominica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Puerto Rico, Trinidad and Tobago, United States, Venezuela Asia Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, China, Cocos (Keeling) Islands, East Timor, Hong Kong, Georgia, India, Indonesia, Iran, Israel, Japan, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Kuwait, Laos, Lebanon, Macau, Malaysia, Mongolia, Nepal, North Korea, Oman, Pakistan, Philippines, Qatar, Oman, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Tailand, Taiwan, Tajikistan, Thailand, United Arab Emirates, Vietnam Australia and Oceanea Australia, Fiji, Guam, New Caledonia, New Zealand, Solomon Islands, Tokelau South America Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Uruguay Africa Algeria, Burkina Faso, Bouvet Island, Cameroon, Central Africa Republic, Egypt, Gabon, Gambon, Ghana, Lesotho, Morocco, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Saint Tome and Principe, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Sudan, Togo, Tunisia If you are visiting us from a location not listed, please let us know here and we'll add your country to our fast expanding global register. Our traffic is increasing fast too! Our web stats also show that our users are finding us in great numbers, with classic vehicle searches on Google, Yahoo, MSN, AOL, AltaVista, Lycos, Ask Jeeves, Looksmart and more.

Thank you! :)
We would like to extend a big thank you to all who have contributed, visited and made enquiries so far!

We provide for you, classic cars for sale, other classics such as motor cycles and classic trucks for sale, parts, products and services for sale. Restorations and Projects. Classic car news, classic car competitions. History of the classic car industry and car manufacturers. Features past and present from classic car shows such as the NEC classic car show and Sema in LA, USA to a tour of the morgan motor factory! Classic car clubs. Classic car forums. Books and videos. Features on the famous with articles on Jeremy Clarkson from BBC's Top gear programme. Classic car paintings for sale. Advertise your wanted classics, Classic car dealers and private sellers can get involved by advertising their cars online. So car dealers sign up now and get the best web advertising.

We would like to hear from enthusisats, experts and owners of any of the following classic vehicles:

AC, AJS, Alfa Romeo, Allard, Alvis, AMC, American Motors, Ariel, Armstrong, Aston Martin, Audi, Austin, Austin-Healey, AWO, Bayliss-Thomas, Bedford, Benelli, Bentley, BMW, Bond, Bristol, BSA, Bugatti, Buick, Cadillac, Caterham, Chevrolet, Chrysler, Citroën, Commer, Corvette, Crossley, CZ, Daf, Daimler, Datsun, De Tomaso, Delage, Delahaye, Dellow, DeLorean, Dennis, Dodge, Ducati, Enfield, Facel-Vega, Fantic, Ferrari, Fiat, Ford, Fordson, Francis Barnett, Freightliner, Ginetta, GMC, Griffon, Haflinger, Harley Davidson, Hillman, Holden, Honda, Humber, Indian, ISO, Isuzu, Jaguar, Jeep, Jensen, Jensen-Healey, Kawasaki, Lamborghini, Lambretta, Lanchester, Lancia, Land Rover, Laverda, Lea-Francis, Leyland, Leyland Daf, Lincoln, Lotus, Marcos, Maserati, Matchless, Matra, Mazda, McKenzie, Mclaren, Mercedes-Benz, Mercury, MG, Mini, Mitsubishi, Morgan, Morini, Morris, Moto Guzzi, Motobi, MV Agusta, MZ, Nissan, Norton, Oldsmobile, Ollerton, Opel, Packard, Panther, Peugeot, Piaggio, Plymouth, Pontiac, Porsche, Puch, Raleigh, Reliant, Renault, Riley, Rolls-Royce, Rover, Royal Enfield, Saab, SIMCA, Singer, Skoda, Standard, Studebaker, Subaru, Sunbeam, Suzuki, Swift, Talbot, Tatra, Toyota, Triumph, TVR, Vanden Plas, Vauxhall, Velocette, Volkswagen., Volvo, Wartburg, Westfield, Willys, Wolseley, Yamaha, Yugo, Zundapp, Any other classic car, classic motor cycle, classic truck, classic farm machinery, or classic military vehicle. Please let us know if yours is not listed.

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	History of Classic Cars

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